Today we’d like to introduce you to Barbara Arredondo.
Barbara, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit. In 1993, I had my first brush with Real Estate and realized I had awakened a hidden talent when I decided to lease a five bedroom flat in London, England and lease out four of the bedrooms to applicants who applied. I devised the plan in order to cover the rent on my bedroom (the 5th bedroom) and have a little extra to live on.
After a year of being a Landlord at 23 years of age, I felt Real Estate running through my blood. I moved Dallas, TX in 1997 after being offered a consulting technical position at Texas Instruments. Fast forward to my last corporate position as an application development project manager at Sprint, there were continuous layoffs every year right around the Thanksgiving Holiday. I decided to take my career into my own hands again and got my real estate license in 2005.
After 18 years of the high stress and seeing many of my close friends being laid off year after year, I decided it was time to put the corporate world behind me and give my real estate business all of my attention. I’ve never looked back since, and my business just keeps exceeding any of the expectations I originally had. I’m 100% referral based and when I look back on the years I spent in the corporate scene, I’m so very thankful for it.
I learned how to be structured, organized, how to implement systems, the importance of diversity and professionalism, and customer service.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
My first year in Real Estate, I didn’t have a single client and zero transactions. Being a transplant from Houston, Texas and really moving to Dallas from London, I didn’t have a lot of solid relationships. I had some, but everyone knew me as the gal who worked at home for Sprint Mobile. Building my clientele was a real whip!
I’m happy I experienced this because I learned how to deal with rejection early on and I felt so exposed and vulnerable when people asked me if I was really busy or how was the business. Over time, I slowly built a solid book of business and continue to grow every day.
I’m my own bookkeeper, marketing department, CEO, CFO, Director of Operations, you name it. Wearing all of these hats and scouting out talent with a real estate license who’s willing to learn this business and work with me to grow my business has been a struggle. Finding that right talent, someone who’s explicitly trustworthy, suits up and shows up (on time), and is detail oriented continues to be a challenge.
We’d love to hear more about what you do.
I think of myself as a Life Style expert. I am a Residential Realtor and hold my license at CLAY STAPP+CO. I work with Sellers and Buyers to define the goals they want to achieve when they are ready to make an address life change. There are so many aspects to Real Estate, but what sets me apart from others is I’m able to leverage my talents to navigate the emotional situations that arise in every transaction, working with me is a true Concierge experience.
When it comes to negotiating a deal, my clients feel like the outcome exceeded their expectations. I have an amazing group of partners such as Lenders, Inspectors, Licensed Specialized, Contractors, Photographers, Insurance companies, and Title Companies that handle all aspects of the transaction, while we work proactively in lockstep as a team to minimize any impact on our client. Prior to listing any property, I sit with my client’s and comb over their documentation from their original purchase.
I provide them with a two-week marketing schedule, and we modify as needed, we also work to define our strategy for working with any future Buyers. I’m most proud of my businesses growth. I couldn’t have done it without grit, some amazing ladies who cheered me on, my business partnerships with other business owners. All of these people have referred business to me, and for that, I’m so proud of the Relationship building.
What were you like growing up?
Oh my gosh, I was a Tom Boy until 12 years of age. I remember playing with my next door neighbor, Pauly all the time. We used to throw rocks at each other after school. He was on his side of the yard, and I was on mine. I always loved wearing pants, jeans over dresses. I used to ride my bike to the store, and when the chain broke off, I would flip the bike over and work on connecting the chain again.
I played baseball in the empty field with all the neighborhood kids. I was fearless! I have a huge family, so my cousins made up my friend’s circle. My favorite subjects in school were History and English. My interest in business started when I was in high school. I worked hard to advance my knowledge in the business world, and all my electives were business courses. I wasn’t sure how I would pay for College, and I knew taking advantage of the business electives may be my only chance out of the neighborhood.
To this day, my hobby is my business, I don’t call it work. People think I’m always working, but I’m not. I’m advancing myself because I love it and I love how this world is moving at a fast pace with technology development, social media, new career paths are at our fingertips, a new way to develop niche markets. It’s so fascinating, and I’m so passionate about being alive at this moment. It’s a great time to be alive.
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